Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Felix.

Mendelssohn's drawing being an imaginary panorama of scenes and objects, including the Stork Hotel, Birmingham Town Hall, with a background of smoking chimneys, a steamboat and the luggage of the travellers Mendelssohn, the author and art critic Henry Chorley and the pianist, conductor and composer Ignaz Moscheles, inscribed and signed by Mendelssohn ("Zu freundlichem Andenken abermals. London den 2^{ten October 40. FMB"), in pen and ink, below which is an elucidation of the drawing by Chorley and an inscription, signed by Ignaz Moscheles ("Bey Gelegenheit des Abschieds: vom fire side trennt sich tief bewegt der Hausvater stets bleibend fire proof I. Moscheles"), by 1 page, folio (32.8 x 26.5cm), London, 2 October 1840, light browning and spotting}



...Here, Ladies and Gentlemen...a mysterious and wonderful hieroglyphic, illustrating the Birmingham Festival, Sep: 1840 - & particularly The Stork - you see. The bird, you perceive, is on the way to the Town Hall, but could not get in, on the day of Mendelssohn's "Lobgesang" for she is very tall & the room was anything but thin...Lastly, comes the steamboat, on the deck of which are two M's and I - Below, our baggage, with a particularly long umbrella - so - good-bye!...

Felix Moscheles, trans. and ed., Letters of Felix Mendelssohn to Ignaz and Charlotte Moscheles (London, no date), p.210

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This fine drawing by Mendelssohn was formerly in the possession of Ignaz Moscheles's wife Charlotte (1805-1889), and has never before been offered to the market.

On 23 September 1840 Mendelssohn conducted his 'Lobgesang' symphony -cantata (Symphony no.2, op.52) at the Birmingham Festival. Following the Birmingham trip, and after a short stay in London, the three travellers Mendelssohn, Moscheles and Chorley left for Leipzig. It is from the eve of their departure that Mendelssohn's pen-and-ink drawing dates, providing a whimsical, delightful record of the trip to Birmingham. Its content has been well described by Moscheles's son Felix (who was Mendelssohn's godson), as follows:

...On the left he draws the Stork Hotel, in which they had taken up their quarters; and next to it a pair of scissors which he had presented to Mrs. Moscheles, and which are drawn stalking vaingloriously along and towering over the Town Hall, of Festival memories. Then comes the Bread-and-Butter Pudding, his favourite dish, the recipe of which he was carrying home with.
   Further on, the cravat which Mrs. Moscheles had given him. He was in the habit of protesting that he had never been able to master the art of adjusting his cravat, and that not until Mrs. Moscheles pronounced the magic words, "Pin it up" was a flood of light thrown on the subject. Above the cravat the steamer stands in readiness for the morrow; below, the mail-coach and the luggage, - amongst the latter, a certain umbrella belonging to Moscheles, which Mendelssohn had unfortunately lost, is conspicuous...

A particularly noteworthy feature of the drawing is Birmingham Town Hall, an important music venue (and newly-opened in 1834) which would later see the first performances of Mendelssohn's Elijah (August 1846) and also Elgar's Dream of Gerontius.